Chocolate Espresso Cake

Ingredients

For Cake:
1 3/4 cup flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
4 Tbs unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 Tbs light corn syrup
2/3 vegetable oil
2/3 cup milk

For Filling:
2/3 cup chocolate chips
1-2 Tbs oil

For Frosting:
1/2 can sweet and condensed milk
2 Tbs butter (at room temperature)
3 heaping Tbs instant coffee crystals
vanilla
1+ cups powdered sugar

For decoration:
1/2 cup chocolate chips


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

To make the cake, lightly grease two round cake pans (8 or 9 in). Stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda??, salt?? and cocoa in a large mixing bowl. Stir in sugar. Make a well in the center, and put in eggs, corn syrup, oil, and milk. Beat the liquids with a wooden spoon, gradually mixing in the dry ingredients to make a smooth batter. Divide the batter between the two pans. Bake 25 -35 minutes, or until springy to the touch, and a tooth pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in pans for 5 minutes, then turn out onto wire racks and let cool completely.

while cake is baking, prepare decorations by melting chocolate chips, and pouring melted chocolate onto a piece of wax paper. Place in freezer.


To make the filling, add the oil to the chocolate in a small saucepan. Let melt over medium heat until just melted. Let cool slightly (no longer hot, but still liquid and spreadable). Begin assembling the cake by placing the first layer on cake plate, and spreading the filling over the top of the first layer (not down the sides). Place the second layer atop the first. Set aside to make the frosting.

To make the frosting, combine sweet and condensed milk and butter. beat in a mixer, or with a hand mixer. In a small dish, combine coffee crystals with enough vanilla so that the coffee crystals dissolve. Stir until smooth, and add to the sweet and condensed milk. Stir in powdered sugar until you reach desired consistency.


Spread frosting over top of cake, letting it drip down the sides.

To decorate, remove chocolate from freezer and using a sharp knife at a 45 degree angle, scrape chocolate curls (see picture below). Scatter your chocolate curls over the cake, and enjoy. Best if eaten the day of or the day after.


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adapted from a Cook's Library recipe.